
Georg Thiele
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You can now see the bow part of the German destroyer ‘Georg Thieles’ also known simply as GT. It is visible just inside the powerplant. GT was run aground by her own crew on the 13th April 1940 when they were forced into the fjord by British vessels. She is the same ship that managed to get a torpedo hit on the English destroyer HMS Eskimo resulting in her losing part of her bow. The ship’s stern was 119 metres long and is located at a depth of 64 metres. GT had a crew of 320 men, which was also true of the other German destroyers in her class. These vessels were built between 1935 and 1939 and were very modern for their time. They could achieve a top speed of over 38 knots. The wreck was almost empty of oil, but not completely. And a few drops of polluting oil are still dripping into the fjord, now and then passing boats notice the distinctive smell of crude oil. Despite this, environmentalists can relax as the leak poses no environmental threat.